Rachel takes a break from studying to play with one of her many pets. (Photo by/ Lisa Streeb)
Rachel Knox-Stutsman gets her hyphenated name from her mother, whom she calls, "one of my feminist heroes." She said her mother kept her own name in 1972, when few women were adopting the practice.
It was this same forward thinking that resulted in Knox-Stutsman's elementary education with the "regular" kids.
"Every professional that we encountered thought I should be in a classroom with special education students. My mom and dad didn't want that. I didn't want that either," said the junior history major, who was born with Cerebral Palsy Spastic Diplegia, which affects motor skills. "We had to fight all through school to keep me in a regular classroom."
Knox-Stutsman shares her mother's pioneering spirit. Last semester she was a sports reporter for the Collegian.
"I like sports and I like to write, so if I'm going to write I want to write about something I'm passionate about," Knox-Stutsman said.
In elementary school she used a walker, and endured several surgeries, most of which failed to achieve the desired effect of independent walking. It was after a surgery in seventh grade to lengthen her hamstrings that Knox-Stutsman gave up the walker. She now uses a power chair to get around when out alone.
"When I was covering softball last semester for the Collegian. We were able to load my power chair into my dad's '77 VW bus with the middle seat taken out of it," said Knox-Stutsman.
"I couldn't get to the media box, because there are stairs at Ram Field. Afterward the media relations people would hook me up with stats and interviews."
She now works the front desk at Resources for Disabled Students, answering the phone, logging test scores, greeting visitors and assisting students.
In those few hours free of work and studies, Knox-Stutsman enjoys outings to movies and coffee houses, but since she doesn't drive getting out can be difficult.
"The bus schedules are at weird times and I just don't have the memory for all those weird times," she said.
Knox-Stutsman would like to see the City of Fort Collins do a better job with public transportation.
"It's not an accessibility problem," she said. "It's just making sure people know when the buses run.
On the first Friday of the month Knox-Stutsman goes downtown with her family for Art Walk. At these times she uses a manual wheelchair and gets a push. Still, getting around has its challenges.
"It's not easy getting around downtown because there are lots of buildings that have steps into them," said Knox-Stutsman.
While she can get into most of the art galleries, the Gallery Underground is an exception. It's down a big flight of stairs.
"I had a friend that had a show there last semester and I wanted to go but I couldn't, so that was kind of hard."
This story is an excerpt from a College Avenue article. Visit College Avenue to read more about how city funding cuts have affected accessibility for the disabled.